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Into the Black

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Drawing on brand new interviews with astronauts and engineers, archive material, and newly declassified documents, Rowland White, bestselling author of Vulcan 607, has pieced together the dramatic untold story of the first space shuttle mission.

Into the Black is a thrilling race against time; a gripping high stakes cold-war story, and a celebration of a beyond the state-of-the-art machine that, hailed as one of the seven new wonders of the world, rekindled our passion for spaceflight.

“Beautifully researched and written, Into The Black tells the true, complete story of the Space Shuttle better than it’s ever been told before.” -- Col. Chris Hadfield, astronaut, author, Space Station commander

"An absolutely terrific look into the birth of the Space Shuttle! Into the Black expertly captures, as never before, a history that spans decades, Cold War tensions, bureaucratic infighting and a multitude of seemingly impossible engineering challenges.But it’s much more than merely the cold facts of how the nuts and bolts all came together. It’s about the people…the men, women, astronauts, engineers, managers, and contractors who had the vision, faith in themselves and sheer guts to believe the impossible could be done; that a reusable, manned, winged craft could be built to routinely fly to and from earth orbit. There are stories of courage and heart-accelerating fear in these pages that even I, as an astronaut, was unaware of." -- Mike Mullane, NASA Astronaut (Ret.), USAF Col., (Ret.), author of Riding Rockets

"An unforgettable book, one destined to become a classic in the emerging field of space history. Moving effortlessly from planning meetings in obscure offices within NASA, the Pentagon, and industry to the unforgiving environment of high-risk flight test and flight into space, this book traces a remarkable journey and, along the way, introduces his readers to a courageous group of far-seeing engineers and astronauts whose bold vision and tenacious work gave humanity its first reusable space transportation system." -- Dr. Richard P. Hallion, Senior Adviser for Air and Space Issues at the Pentagon, author of On the Frontier

“Brilliantly revealed, Into the Black is the finely-tuned true story of the first flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia. Rowland White has magnificently laid bare the unknown dangers and unseen hazards of that first mission. He has also given us an amazing insight into a world of science and engineering, the victories and defeats, for the first time. It’s the perfect tale that educates as it entertains. Once read, not forgotten.” -- Clive Cussler

"This remarkable book describes the final (and unpublished) chapter in the Race to the Moon. Between 1961 and 1963, four groups of astronauts were selected by the USA -- three groups were comprised of those pilots who were assigned to NASA and were highly publicized as men who explored the Moon. The fourth group disappeared into the black world of the CIA, the NRO, and the Top Secret Air Force Manned Orbiting Laboratory. This is the exciting first-told story of these exceptional pilots who only became known publicly during the development and first flights of the Space Shuttle – flights into the real Black of Space." -- Dave Scott, Commander, Apollo 15

"This account of America's greatest and, in hindsight, most dangerous manned spaceflight is a fantastic read. After I started it, I read it straight through. For more than spaceflight geeks, this is the story of an astonishing adventure that, despite the outward confidence of NASA, could have and perhaps should have gone horribly wrong." -- Homer Hickam, author Rocket Boys